It Takes Train Tracks and Hydraulic Lifters to Move This Telescope Around

Deep in the New Mexico desert sits the Very Large Array radio telescope. The VLA is different from many other telescopes in that it's not just a single installation, but is made up of 27 giant radio antennas that work together to study the sky. These antennas are more than 80 feet across, and are usually oriented in a Y shape that spans 30 miles. And they move.

The people who run VLA routinely reposition these radio antennas to change the resolution of the array and focus on specific bands. Picking up and moving a giant antenna is no easy task. You can watch this process in the video above.

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The VLA uses a hydraulic lifter to pick up the antenna and transport it along sets of railroad tracks to its destination. The VLA uses sets of tracks set at 90 degree angles, and the lifter is designed to raise itself off the ground and rotate its wheels to switch tracks. Once the lifter is in position, the antenna is lowered onto a preset concrete platform.